Engineering and Codes

Home Inspector Licensure Board - Licensing

Home Inspector - FAQs

QUESTION:

Do relocation inspections fall under the jurisdiction of the North Carolina Home Inspector Licensure Law and do they have to comply with the same reporting requirements? The relocation form states that it is a "Property Assessment."

ANSWER:

Under North Carolina Law a home inspection is a "written evaluation of two or more of the following components of a residential building: heating, cooling, plumbing, electrical, structural, foundation, roof, masonry, exterior, interior, or any other related housing components." N.C. General Statute 143-151.45.

Therefore, a relocation inspection that involves the inspection of two or more component of a North Carolina residential building is a home inspection subject to the laws governing North Carolina, including the Standards of Practice.

If a relocation inspection involves the inspection of two or more components of a North Carolina residential building, then a Home Inspectors license is required to perform such inspection and the inspection and report must meet the same requirements of the Standards of Practice as a pre-purchase home inspection.

QUESTION:

Can a Home Inspector affiliate with a real estate company as a "preferred partner", "bronze", "silver", or "gold" status, etc., or other forms of "partnership" in magazine articles, printed brochures or via website links?

ANSWER:

Consider the ethical implications stemming from the above arrangement. For a fee, home inspectors and others can be listed in the various categories. The more the inspector pays, the more benefits they get in terms of the prominence of their ad, and other ancillary benefits such as the right to do presentations at the realty office. While the contracts that are signed may state at the bottom "that the advertiser is not a paying for business but for advertising", it does not appear that it would be clear to the real estate company’s clients (general public) that the realty firm is not endorsing or recommending Home Inspectors who participate in such a "partnership" without an explicit indication it is a paid advertisement.

NCAC [Rules] .1116 CODE OF ETHICS (e), states no licensee shall accept or offer commissions or allowances, directly or indirectly, from other parties dealing with the client in connection with work for which the licensee is responsible.

The Board believes that participating in such an ad relationship would be a violation of the Code of Ethics. If a home inspector pays a realty firm to have a printed ad, or an internet ad on the agency website, in order for the home inspector to avoid violating the Code of Ethics, the ad MUST clearly and prominently state, "This ad has been purchased and paid for by this Home Inspector." If the ad does not make such a statement, the Home Inspector buying such an ad is in violation of the Code of Ethics. The effective date of this ruling has been established as May 1, 2009.